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Old 05-21-2013, 01:53 PM   #1
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choosing a new battery

Hello,
When I bought my 83 TT1350, the battery was not working anymore. It was a large size, and kept under the bench next to the fresh water tank. I was told that it wasn't factory and that I should replace it with something smaller, and keep it on the outside of the camper, attach it to the hitch and over it.

Is this sound advice? What is the best size for my small camper? Ideally I'd like to have a couple days I could boondock running from battery.

Thanks!
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Old 05-24-2013, 08:36 PM   #2
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Try to look for a large group 29 Deep cycle or two 6volt deep cycle golf cart batteries.. It all depends on what you want to spend.. How you camp can also exstend you boondocking trips...
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Old 05-25-2013, 06:46 AM   #3
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If you don't use much power then you don't need a huge battery but people have gotten used to carrying stuff with them like laptops cell phones etc. and if you are the camp ground type and are plugged in then you basically don't need a battery. I my case I go for a long time (a week or more) with out power and I have 2. Charging batteries produce hydrogen gas and should be vented and sealed from the living space. if you have a place on the hitch it would be a safer place for it.
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Old 05-27-2013, 10:58 PM   #4
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i don't need anything too fancy. i'd even be fine with a gently used battery if i could find one. i think the deep cylce ones are less common tho.

i get deep cycle, and the size depends on my needs. what are the specs? 12V, or 6v? 112? i'm just throwing out numbers i've heard people talking about :P i dont' have any experience in this area. does the size relate to the voltage or is that seperate?

thanks!
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Old 05-28-2013, 06:13 AM   #5
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V = voltage;


#ie 27 or 29 =size of the battery, as far as I know.....do you have a battery box - the black plastic box the battery should be sitting in? If so measure that and then measure the size of the battery to make sure they will be compatable.
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Old 06-05-2013, 05:36 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by noralee View Post
Hello,
Quote:
Originally Posted by noralee View Post
When I bought my 83 TT1350, the battery was not working anymore. It was a large size, and kept under the bench next to the fresh water tank. I was told that it wasn't factory and that I should replace it with something smaller, and keep it on the outside of the camper, attach it to the hitch and over it.

Is this sound advice? What is the best size for my small camper? Ideally I'd like to have a couple days I could boondock running from battery.

Thanks!

Quote:
Originally Posted by noralee View Post
i don't need anything too fancy. i'd even be fine with a gently used battery if i could find one. i think the deep cylce ones are less common tho.

i get deep cycle, and the size depends on my needs. what are the specs? 12V, or 6v? 112? i'm just throwing out numbers i've heard people talking about :P i dont' have any experience in this area. does the size relate to the voltage or is that seperate?

thanks!

Hi Noralee, do not know if you have made it past this yet, I'll add a few things in case you have not.

The standard/normal wet cell lead acid battery needs to outside on the trailer A frame for the reason Mainah stated. The battery boils and gasses off when it charges. Sunline should have placed 2 small pieces of angle iron that make what we call a battery tray out on the A frame near the LP tank. A plastic battery case goes on first and then the battery goes inside it. Drill 1 or 2 holes in the bottom of the battery box to let the water out from a rain.

When you move the battery to the A frame, make sure the 2 wires are the correct very large size. Yours "might" be setup for a no. 6 awg wire.

The standard size battery that most all Sunlines came with is known as a group 24 case size battery. That is what would fit the battery tray. Group 27, 29, 31 etc are larger capacity batteries, they are also bigger in physical size. Pending the battery tray size Sunline put on the camper, to go to a larger battery case size “sometimes” means you have to make a different kind of battery tray. It all depends on which way they run the angle iron. If you are not sure, measure the angle iron on the camper before going to the store to buy the new battery.

Deep cycle 12 volt DC is the voltage and type of battery your want. Do not get a “starter” battery which is like what is used in a car. They are made for very high amp draw real fast but not many of them. The Deep cycle is made for long cycles of medium amps and can handle many recharges. You might find what they call a hybrid, a marine/deep cycle battery. These will work, not as good as a true deep cycle battery. They are made more for the boating world to have a level of starting and deep cycle. In the case your Sunline, you will never be starting a motor.

You mentioned boondocking then simple and not too fancy. The 2 wants can sometime conflict. A standard Group 24 case size battery can still be used for boodocking, It will not last as long as a group 27, 29 etc however if you do not need that larger capacity, it does you not a lot of good can take a larger battery box and some fiddling to get it to fit in the standard Group 24 battery tray on the camper.

I have seen many SOC members use the standard Grp 24 battery size and boondock in the Adirondacks just fine. Some carry an extra battery if they want more power longer and do not have a generator. The length of time you can run on a battery all comes down to how much power you use. Even I use to do some boondocking on a grp 24. I now have 2 grp 27's but I have a bigger camper, a slide motor drive, power jack etc.

The fridge needs to work to keep the food cold even on LP gas. So that is a must. If you only use the HW heater when you need to and turn it off when not needing it, it can then not use battery or LP. I thought you bought a new electronic one verses the old all gas unit. Unhook the radio in the camper as it sucks power even if the thing is not turned on. Make sure the roof antenna power booster is off.

Lights, that is a big one. Buy maybe 3 LED lights for the main 3 lights you need. The older standard bulbs suck a lot of battery power if you leave them on for a medium or short while. You can power approx 5 to maybe 6 LED lights for the battery power of one standard 921 light bulb.

Hope this helps

John
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Old 06-14-2013, 06:07 PM   #7
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john, thanks a lot for that info!

here's what i'm looking at, a middle of the road battery. by the way, does the fresh water (reserve) tank water pump generator only work with the battery?

DieHard Marine Deep Cycle/RV Battery- Group Size 27M

thanks again and in advance for all the suggestions.
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Old 06-16-2013, 09:04 PM   #8
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by the way, does the fresh water (reserve) tank water pump generator only work with the battery?
The water pump if it is still original works on 12 VDC. Means off the battery or off the power converter

The Sears battery you picked will work OK. If they happen to have a Deep Cycle Only verses the Marine/deep cycle that will be a step better but both will work.
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Old 06-30-2013, 08:08 PM   #9
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i got a 24 battery. i believe brand name 'deka' from jd sanders, the rv store near me. i think it will be a good fit for my needs. thanks again for the insights!
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